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Leadership 101

I went on a binge watching videos of many influential and iconic figures of our time courtesy of YouTube.  I started with interviews conducted at the Stanford Graduate School of Business where eminent personalities are interviewed by a then GSB student.

I found a few traits among all these folk that I want to summarize -


  1. Be passionate about your objective or goals (first have a goal) - if there is no passion then it does not matter what you are doing because your heart is not into it.  Examples abound from Steve Jobs to CEOs of other large corporations.. Most enterprises or successful businesses get there by being able to convince others to buy their product or service.  You cannot do the convincing if you do not believe in it.  Passion is also contagious.  That helps in gathering a fan following, no marketing needed.
  2. Be humble - humility is the most under appreciated virtue in business.   Bragging gets you only so far but admitting what you don't know and then making a point to find out more or more often finding someone who does will set you apart.  Asking for help is not a bad idea.
  3. Take risks - No risk no reward is the old adage.  Do not procrastinate about an idea or instinct because time does not wait for any man (or woman).  Regrets can be hard to digest.
  4. Communicate well.  It also means that good leaders often listen well.  If you listen you can connect.  When you connect you are communicating.  
Some of the fascinating figures that were interviewed at GSB include Ratan Tata of Tata Sons; Ajay Banga of Mastercard, Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase, Indra Nooyi of Pepsico, Doug McMillon of Walmart.

All of them have a mix of the above qualities, some more some less.  But the mix is such that makes for a winning formula.  Anyone can attain this level of expertise but it also does require a few strokes of pure luck to come your way.  Warren Buffet often talks about this in his interviews.  He feels he was first lucky to be born in one of the greatest nations on earth.  Pure chance and genetics.  Then he had some amazing mentors along the way.  Also luck.

In 2012 the now famous author of Liar's Poker and a Princeton graduate addressed the graduating class with these words -

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2012/06/03/princeton-universitys-2012-baccalaureate-remarks

I think humility as Mike mentions is integral to knowing your own limits but being grateful for when lady luck smiles on you.

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